Clay, no words are sufficient to express our gratitude to you for discovering and sharing the link.

A duet between Chloe and the Italian tenor Alessandro Rinella, the song is called "L'assenza" (i.e., "the absence"). It is by far the most gorgeous film in which Chloe has ever appeared, a profound evocation of the power of Beauty, and one of the most Romantic videos that we have ever seen.

It depicts Chloe as she truly is--as an incarnation of the timeless ideal, able to inspire the greatest works of art.

The video begins with the tenor, like a Romantic poet, wandering deep in the Germanic Urwald, the primeval forest that was so potent a symbol in continental Romanticism.

Suddenly, in a glimpse so brief that it is almost subliminal, he sees in his mind's eye a vision of ideal Beauty--i.e, Chloe, looking more gorgeous than ever before. The still illustrates the soft fullness of her facial features, and her fair, goddesslike tresses ornamented with blossoms.

She truly appears to be an angel descended from heaven, and the tenor sings with newfound passion as he sees this celestial muse.

We see her walking in an idyllic setting, her gown glowing with a divine radiance. (Incidentally, no special effects were employed to create this effect, for in real life, Chloe does glow with precisely such a heavenly light.)

She makes the most graceful gestures imaginable as she sings her part of the song, as the camera comes in as close as it possibly can, to feature her doll-like facial features and golden tresses.

In a sequence that seems to have come from a fairy-tale, Chloe descends a magnificent winding staircase, her diaphanous gown shining as if lit from within.

In the most moving scene of the video, the melancholy poet, inspired by her and utterly in love with her, runs toward her as he sees her against the backdrop of a magnificent palace.

But as he approaches, her glow intensifies,

and she dematerializes into a shower of sparkling light--for beauty such as hers, while it can be admired from afar, can never be grasped by any mere mortal.

But absent as she may be to material touch, she remains his spiritual muse, his angel of music, singing to him in the forest.

No other singer in the world--nor actress, nor model--could as perfectly embody timeless beauty of voice and person as Chloe does.

Chloe's loveliness having given the poet/tenor his voice, the final scene shows him singing before an adoring public, as she watches over him, like a guardian angel.

How encouraging to see that the conception of ideal Beauty, as presented in this video, is not a skeletal waif, but a full-bodied, Rubenesque angel like Chloe. Her opulent appearance matches the sumptuous splendour of the Historicist building that provides the setting.

Despite the presence of the crowd, the poet sings only to her, his muse, offering his gift of song as a tribute--for she was the inspiration that gave him his voice.

As the two sing together, celestial light radiates from Chloe, illuminating him by reflection (symbolic of how her beauty has kindled his creative fire). Note how the shot captures her buxom curves.

The palace-like structure in which this video was filmed, incidentally, is actually the Neues Rathaus, or New Town Hall in Hannover, one of the very few buildings in this famous German city to have survived the Allied bombing. It is a Historicist masterpiece, surrounded by a moat (like a true castle), and its 19th-century splendour, inside and out, provides the ideal setting for the film's storyline.

For the climax of the video, Chloe sings a series of almost impossibly high notes, her voice crystalline and ethereal--truly the song of an angel.

As she sings, she glows brighter, and vanishes into the Empyrean--leaving the poet alone to perform in this mortal realm, and share the gift that she has given him with the world.

And yet, he is not quite alone, for as he sings, we see her image overlaid in an image with his--betokening how the muse is forever in his heart. Chloe's gesture for this shot is especially graceful.

Perhaps a purely Romantic work would have ended on such a bittersweet note. However, the video adds a lovely extra touch at the end, offering the poet human happiness as well as artistic fulfillment. For as he gazes into the crowd, he sees Chloe herself--no longer as an angel, but as a human being (albeit a breathtakingly beautiful one). If anything, she seems even more gorgeous in this wardrobe than before, adorned with gold necklaces, her tresses full and voluptuous, the richness of her figure perceptible beneath her magnificent dress. What a contrast she provides to the prosaically dressed individuals in the crowd around her. She still seems superhuman--as if she were a muse who fell in love with her poet, and decided to take human form to join him in this terrestrial sphere. Yet even as a flesh-and-blood woman, she still possesses the physical splendour of a goddess.

This video is a magnificent presentation of Chloe's otherworldly beauty and angelic singing abilities, and a profoundly Romantic comment on the nature of art and inspiration. It dramatizes a theme that we have often discussed on the forum, which is, the real-world importance of the timeless feminine ideal. Only through the existence of living, full-figured goddesses such as Chloe can great art exist in this world, for only their beauty is sufficiently transcendent to inspire the sublimest human creations.

Absolutely stunning video. It blends everything perfectly -- a gorgeous and curvaceous singer, a Classical musical style, feminine wardrobe, elegant settings, and even a Romantic storyline. The result is a harmonious presentation of timeless beauty in every aspect. I love what Chloe does with Celtic Woman, but this seems a tad more sophisticated -- even as it preserves her youthful beauty and angelic singing voice.

I would love to have this video on DVD. Indeed, I'd love to see Chloe record a new solo DVD with a host of videos in this style.

I would also be eager to see pictures of Chloe in her celestial white gown from this video. Whoever adorned her with this look saw her true self, and presented her in an utterly enchanting manner.

no special effects were employed to create this effect, for in real life, Chloe does glow with precisely such a heavenly light.

I don't doubt it in the least. I didn't think it was possible for any mortal woman to look that gorgeous. Chloe must have a touch of the divine. If I were ever to meet Chloe in person, I'm sure that I would see radiant light shining from her - so dazzling is her beauty.

The storyline of the video is fascinating. It even makes me think of the Judgment of Paris myth (thanks to this web site), in which the shepherd Paris chooses Venus as the most beautiful of all the goddesses, then Venus thanks Paris by providing her with Helen of Troy, the most gorgeous of mortal women. In her divine white guise, Chloe embodies a goddess such as Venus, and then in her crimson dress, she is a human beauty (albeit the loveliest mortal woman of all time), Helen of Troy. Chloe-as-Venus has gifted Chloe-as-Helen to the poet/tenor.

Or, you could say that through the power of his art, the poet has brought ideal beauty (Chloe in radiant white) to earth, to share with humanity in the form of apprehensible beauty (Chloe in crimson). It's like an artistic version of the Prometheus myth.

And doesn't it make sense that both Venus and Helen of would resemble one another? If both are meant to embody the ideal of feminine beauty, then they would have to look similar. And it wouldn't surprise me in the least if, upon seeing either one of these historical paragons of loveliness, Venus or Helen of Troy, one would find them looking identical to Chloe herself.

The palace-like structure in which this video was filmed, incidentally, is actually the Neues Rathaus, or New Town Hall in Hannover, one of the very few buildings in this famous German city to have survived the Allied bombing. It is a Historicist masterpiece, surrounded by a moat (like a true castle), and its 19th-century splendour, inside and out, provides the ideal setting for the film's storyline.

I forgot to comment on this, but -- yes! The Historicism of the end of the 19th century, up to WWI, is probably the most beautiful period in architecture, ever. Neo-Gothic, Neo-Romanesque -- it was a time when all of the finest architectural styles from throughout history were being revived and elaborated. The most beautiful castles and palaces and public buildings were all created during this time period.

Hannover was terribly destroyed in WWII, but somehow the Neues Rathaus survived. It's a gorgeous structure, a blending of the sublime and the beautiful, and the director chose well in having it represent a fairy-tale palace.

Here's what the interior looks like, more closely resembling a magnificent temple than a public building.

Here's a view of the winding staircase down which Chloe descends in her white gown.

How I would love to see a plus-size model do a shoot in a setting like this -- both the exterior shots, in front of the "castle," and the interview views. Magnificent.

I stumbled upon this in my own internet travels today. I'm in LOVE. It's up on my Facebook page, in fact. Chloe is just a jewel, in every possible way.

I wanted to also mention that I am quite sure, being an opera singer, that Alessandro Rinella identifies female muses as being voluptuous. Not meaning to generalize, but Italian men have a very romantic notion of femininity, and in the opera world it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that the best voices are generally attached to voluptuous goddesses. It is a world that embraces curves. (Look at Karen Vermeiren!) It is perhaps the only entertainment/artistic venue where goddesses of non-pixie proportions can be cast as worship-worthy female leads. I would love, love, love to see some academic work/analysis on this fact.

In any event, this is such a stunning recording. I love the Neue Rathaus setting (would never have guessed Hannover), and Chloe and Alessandro are just...breathtaking. What a voice on her! She is quite physically beautiful, but even on pure talent alone she is heart-stoppingly gifted.

Chloe is a goddess. I make sure my daughter sees her work and photos often!